The anthologyThe Nordic Welfare Statecontains Chinese translations of chapters written by several Nordic welfare researchers. This is the first comprehensive book on the Nordic welfare state to be published in Chinese.
- Chinese researchers are actively seeking cooperation with international colleagues. The Nordic countries may be particularly interesting in a Chinese context, because of our characteristic welfare regime, says Karl Henrik Sivesind.
- The Nordic countries are clearly relevant cases for those interested in welfare politics. But even though Chinese researchers and politicians are studying the Nordic welfare state, this does not necessarily mean that they will want to adopt the Nordic model, says Grete Brochmann.
Nordic popular movements
Sivesind’s chapter, co-authored with Per Selle (The University of Bergen), discusses the role of civil society in the Nordic welfare state.
- Popular movements have played a significant role in shaping the Nordic welfare regimes. In the Nordic social corporate model, which Stein Rokkan characterized ascorporative pluralism, civil society organizations have been actively involved in policy-making.
Popular movements have served as the link between citizens and the state. - In fact, Nordic popular movements argued for universalism of welfare benefits even when the social democratic parties favoured employment-based welfare schemes similar to Germany.
Immigration and welfare
Grete Brochmann (Institute for Social Research & University of Oslo) contributes with a chapter on migration and the Nordic welfare state.
- The generous Nordic welfare regimes have been contingent on strict controls on immigration, says Brochmann. - The universal welfare benefits are expensive, and it has always been necessary to restrict access to these benefits in order to sustain the system.
Sino-Nordic cooperation
The book is edited by Stein Kuhnle (University of Bergen & Hertie School of Governance, berlin), Chen Yinzhang (Director Nordic Center, Fudan University), Klaus Petersen (University of Southern Denmark) and Pauli Kettunen (University of Helsinki).
